Thursday, December 22, 2011

Change of Subject reader survey

I decided to borrow a page from Andrew Sullivan, who recently conducted an Urtak.com wiki survey on his wildly popular Daily Dish site in order to get a better handle on who his readers are and what they want from the blog. Participants can add their own yes/no questions to the mix as the survey goes along (though they must register, free, with Urtak to do so).

So here, for what they may be worth, are the results of 4,201 response to 24 questions:

Are you male?72 percent yes

Are you a regular reader of the comments section of this blog?75 percent yes

Do you wish there were more content -- more posts more often -- on this blog?70 percent yes

Do you regularly read other Tribune blogs?27 percent yes

Do you think Eric Zorn treats commenters fairly that are opposed to his views?93 percent yes

Are you a fan of folk music?45 percent yes

In general, do you consider the normal give and take of political disputes on this blog in within the bounds of appropriate civil discourse?93 percent yes

Do you have an iPad?21 percent yes

Are you a regular reader of the print edition of the Chicago Tribune?44 percent yes

Are you a regular reader of the online edition of the Chicago Tribune?76 percent yes

Have you ever posted a comment to "Change of Subject"?71 percent yes

Do you consider yourself politically left of center?71 percent yes

Do you live in the six-county Chicago area?84 percent yes

Do you usually look at "Change of Subject" every weekday?77 percent yes

Do you think you will vote for Barack Obama for president in 2012?87 percent yes

Did you vote for Barack Obama for president in 2008? 88 percent yes

Would you vote for Ron Paul if he were the GOP (or third party) nominee?7 percent yes

Would you vote for John Huntsman if he were the GOP nominee?29 percent yes

Would you pay $5 a month to read Eric's column (and the rest of the Trib site)?31 percent yes

Are you a lifelong resident of the Chicago area?57 percent yes

Would you vote for the Republican presidential nominee in 2012?20 percent yes

Has a comment on this blog ever significantly changed your opinion on a subject?45 percent yes

Do you have four years, or more, of post high school education? 94 percent yes

Comments

You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.

I tried to add this question, only to discover that you have to register & set up yet another account, with name & password.
No, I won't do that!
" Do you think Eric Zorn treats commenters fairly that are opposed to his views?"
I would have answered yes, for the most part, except for the deletions!

What's with the "Don't Care" option? Most of those are yes/no questions, period. "Don't care" isn't really an appropriate answer to, for instance, "Do you live in the six county Chicago area?"

ZORN REPLY -- This device isn't particularly customizable. I like much of the interface but wish there were more options than yes/no and that instead of "don't care" you could answer, say, "pass."
On the other hand, what people say they like about it is that it's simple, not asking you to gradate things 1 through 10.

Would I vote for the Republican nominee in 2012? That's easy, no. None of the current candidates would be an improvement over Obama, in my opinion. And I sure won't have to down a few stiff drinks before I vote to re-elect him.

Would I pay $5 to read the Trib's website [& Eric's column?]
No, because I'm already a Trib print subscriber.
We who pay to have it thrown onto our front porches shouldn't have to pay extra for web access. The NY Times has it if you pay for the actual paper, you get full web access at no extra cost.
The Sun-Times has made the mistake of charging its print subscribers extra, as has the Daily Herald.
This shortsighted, foolish greed will kill off both of them.

Count me in with those who feel that print subscribers should have full web access for free. The Tribune has been tossed on the driveway of my homes from before I was born until today, over 50 years later.

I believe I have earned free access to essentially the same product on the internet.

Looking at the results of this poll it looks like I'm really really outnumbered here.
Kind of feel like Custer. Oh well, there aren't any bows and arrows here, and people here are actually a lot nicer than in some other forums.

About "Change of Subject."

"Change of Subject" by Chicago Tribune op-ed columnist Eric Zorn contains observations, reports, tips, referrals and tirades, though not necessarily in that order. Links will tend to expire, so seize the day. For an archive of Zorn's latest Tribune columns click here. An explanation of the title of this blog is here. If you have other questions, suggestions or comments, send e-mail to ericzorn at gmail.com.
More about Eric Zorn

Contributing editor Jessica Reynolds is a 2012 graduate of Loyola University Chicago and is the coordinator of the Tribune's editorial board. She can be reached at jreynolds at tribune.com.